Tag: Undergraduate Students

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TAI 2016-2017 Student Awards

It’s been a wonderful year here at Temerlin Advertising Institute. With so many creative, industry, and SMU awards earned by our students, we could not be prouder. Along with external awards, we’ve recognized some of our students who go above and beyond what is required of them. Below are all the awards, external and internal, earned by our students during the 2016-2017 academic year.

INDUSTRY:

TAI Assistant Director Amy Dahmann and TAI Team Player Award Winner Matthew Smyth

4A’s Multicultural Advertising Internship Program (MAIP) – Idara Akpan

AAF’s Most Promising Multicultural Student – Marisol Moran-Sendra & Sofia Rosell

AAF American Advertising Awards (ADDYs) – Helen Rieger, Jackson Foley, Liz Martinelli, Morgan Hoff, Samantha Butz, Tiffan Giraudon

AAF Stickell Internship – Alex Gurasich

Advertising Education Foundation of Houston Scholarship – Matthew Smyth, Gyeryeong Kim

Alliance for Women in Media (AWM) Dallas Irene Runnels-Paula McStay Scholarship – Rita De Obarrio

DFW Interactive Marketing Association Scholarship – Rita De Obarrio

DSVC National Show Best Print Advertising Campaign & Best Copy – Morgan Hoff & Tanner Thompson

SMU:

TAI Professor Muralidharan, Assistant Director Amy Dahmann, and TAI Donald Carty Leadership Award Recipient Jessica Giraudon

SMU Mortar Board Top 10 Sophomore – Jolie Guz

Engaged Learning Project – Samantha Butz

Hunt Scholar – Jessica Giraudon

TAI Student Marshal at Graduation – Paige Brown

TAI Undergraduate Reader at Graduation – Tanner Thompson

TAI:

TAI Anchor Award – Julia Christen, Kelsi Jiang

TAI Donald John Carty Leadership Award – Jessica Giraudon

Face of TAI Award – Marisol Moran-Sendra, Tanner Thompson

TAI Optimizer Award – Helen Rieger

TAI Professor Mark Allen and TAI Resilience Award Recipient Laura Walsh

TAI Outstanding Academic Achievement in Creative – Helen Rieger

TAI Outstand Academic Achievement in Digital – Paige Brown

TAI Outstanding Academic Achievement in Strategic Brand Management – Marison Moran-Sendra

TAI Outstanding Graduate Student – Lauren Lombardo

TAI Resilience Award – Laura Walsh

TAI Responsibility Award – Idara Akpan, Rachel Kainer

TAI Service Award – Ryan Blitzer

TAI Team Player Award – Matthew Smyth

HONOR SOCIETIES:

Alpha Delta Sigma – Amy Cooley, Bari Kesner, Gifford Mellick, Greyeong Kim, Helen Rieger, Jessica Giraudon, Joanna Fennessey, Julia Christen, Laura Walsh, London Mercer, Marisol Moran-Sendra, Matthew Smyth, Nicholas McCall, Paige Brown, Rachel Kainer, Tiffany Giraudon

TAI Alpha Delta Sigma Honor Society Members

Kappa Tau Alpha – Arden Leone, Marisonl Moran-Sendra, Mustafiz Rahman, Paige Brown, Samantha Butz

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Better Advertising. Better World. Internships Professional Development TAI Students Undergraduate Students

TAI Student Ryan Blitzer Graduating with MA in Popular Film and BA in Advertising

Click the picture to view Ryan Blitzer’s website.

Many students take on the impressive challenge of double majoring or completing a 4+1 program during their college careers. TAI student Ryan Blitzer has been able to do both in his four years at SMU. Last May, after his third year at SMU, Blitzer completed a BFA in Film & Media Arts. This May, he will be graduating with a Masters degree in Popular Film and Media Studies along with another Bachelors degree in Advertising.

“I will be the first to graduate with a new +1 MA in Popular Film and Media Studies,” Blitzer said. “I actually completed my undergraduate degree in film in 3 years, so I’ll be graduating in 4 years with my Masters degree from SMU. The program focuses on application of techniques and commonalities among different types of film. The classes often help to drive specialization of a study of a certain genre (i.e. horror), and most who graduate with this degree will pursue a Ph.D. in Film. While the program does not have a lot of production, I’ve been able to take electives to satisfy my on-set urges and work 1:1 with professors in the film department. It’s been an awesome experience; I’ve even been able to present in Las Vegas on one of the papers I wrote!”

Blitzer became interested in film in high school when he took a set of classes in TV production, which eventually required him to make short films. From there, he applied to film schools across the country.

Shot from one of Blitzer’s specs for Wii U. Click the picture to see the full spec.

“My favorite thing about filmmaking is the ability to connect with people through a medium that people accept readily,” Blitzer said. “The idea that someone could tell a story that truly impacts someone’s life is humbling, and I love that there are so many opportunities to create different types of films.”

Blitzer chose to add an advertising degree later in his college career. Initially viewing the major as a “backup” to a career in film, Blitzer quickly realized that he very much enjoys advertising, especially creating commercials.

“My favorite thing about advertising is that the skills are adaptable to a wide range of applications,” Blitzer said. “Learning to tell stories through one spot or one print ad is very difficult, and when you combine both skill sets [advertising and film] you are able to tell a more cohesive and stronger story that connects with more people.”

During his past four years at SMU, Blitzer has had impactful professors that have helped him realize his goals for the future.

“If I were to pick a mentor in each department, for film, it would be Professor Troy Perkins, and for advertising, it would be Professor Willie Baronet,” Blitzer said. “Their support has driven me to be more acutely creative and accelerate the refinement of skills I’ve learned. They really taught me about the stories behind the pretty pictures, and how to form the stories that can impact the most people emotionally and realistically.”

Post-graduation, Blitzer has accepted a paid internship position with Mary Kay and hopes to eventually move into freelancing. He is currently interning with charlieuniformtango, a commercial product and post-production company located in downtown Dallas.

Photograph by Ryan Blitzer as part of collection called “A Different Perspective”

“My internship with charlieuniformtango [CUT for short] has been phenomenal,” Blitzer said. “CUT is mainly known for post-production; several spots they edited were in the Super Bowl this year. I was able to shadow many of the post-production editors, graphics artists, etc., but my principal duties were in production. I worked with several of the directors and executive producers on sets including the Texas Rangers, Mary Kay, Dr. Pepper and Gamestop. Being in a professional environment allowed me to refine skills and see a slightly different workflow to commercial and short filmmaking than what I was used to. I’ll be able to adapt and use those skills in future freelancing.”

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Better Advertising. Better World. SMU Creative TAI Students Undergraduate Students

Sisters Jessica and Tiffany Giraudon Attend the TAI Program Together

Going to school with a sibling is an experience that many siblings have in their lifetime. However, more rarely do students have the experience of attending the same college as their siblings. Even more rarely are siblings in the same program and major at the exact same time. TAI students and sisters Jessica and Tiffany Giraudon share this experience.

Tiffany and Jessica outside Dallas Hall.

With only a one-year difference in age, Jessica and Tiffany were admitted to the program at the exact same time. The only difference is that Jessica is specializing in Strategic Brand Management while her younger sister Tiffany is on the Creative track.

“Jessica and I have always been competitive but in the best way possible,” Tiffany said. “We don’t want to beat each other as much as we want to push the other to perform at their fullest potential. Having classes together has definitely fostered our competitive side, but also fostered a want to help and see the other succeed. Jessica and I have always had different habits when it comes to school and how we like to get things done so it has been nice to see the way we have evolved and worked together through group projects and various courses.”

The Strategic Brand Management and Creative tracks have very different style classes and subject matter. The Creative track has very hands-on courses that have student constantly producing ads, logos, and other relevant design work. The Strategic Brand Management track focuses more on the account side of advertising, including strategic planning, business development, and brand management. Because of the differences in tracks, Jessica and Tiffany have grown to appreciate the work each other does.

“It wasn’t until I took the Creative Production class that I realized how much time, dedication and skill it takes to produce high quality creative work,” Jessica said. “I view my work in brand management and planning as the precursor to strong creative work. Our job is to provide consumer insight and direction so that the creatives can develop ways to engage consumers by creating an actual ad.”

While many of the classes they take differ because of their specializations, they have taken many of the general core advertising courses together. This has allowed them to grow their relationship in a new way.

“It was always a relief to have a sister in class for multiple reasons,” Tiffany said. “I always had an automatic group partner I knew would pull their weight, I always had a buddy to sit by in class, and I always had someone who understood the work I was doing and could push me to do my best work. It has definitely made the program enjoyable and allowed me to get to know my sister in a new, academic setting.”

Both sisters agree that having a sibling in their same program influenced their experiences for the better.

“Having Tiffany in the advertising program enhanced my experience in the program,” Jessica said. “It equipped me with a better understanding of and appreciation for other disciplines within advertising. It’s interesting to hear her talk about what she’s learning in her classes and impressive to see the work she’s producing.”

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Better Advertising. Better World. Internships Internships Professional Development TAI Students Undergraduate Students

TAI Students Elissa Evanich and Bella Pepin Intern with D Custom

Every semester multiple SMU and TAI students intern with D Magazine, as they have a wide variety of positions available to students and allow them to gain experience during the school year. This semester, two TAI students on the Strategic Brand Management track, Elissa Evanich and Bella Pepin, are both interning with D Custom, a content marketing agency owned by D Magazine.

Evanich (left) and a group of interns at D Custom.

Evanich serves as a Content Marketing Intern, while Pepin is a Social Media Intern. Both work on social media but different aspects of it. Evanich does competitive research and social media analytics, while Pepin primarily produces content for D Custom’s social media platforms. That being said, the average day of an intern is similar regardless of position.

“I come in and check my email first,” Pepin said. “There are always emails about happenings or free stuff from the D Magazine team downstairs, so I look out for those. I write, edit, and schedule out social for the week. I go to all the meetings my manager attends, which is a lot. We have an intern project due at the end of the semester, so we work on that during work hours too.”

As the internship has progressed, Evanich has learned the importance of certain skills to the world of content marketing.

“Content marketing is interesting because it learning how to write as the voice of the brand,” Evanich said. “This internship has given me additional experience in writing and speaking professionally. I think being able to not just sell yourself but also your ideas is very important. ”

Evanich also emphasized the importance of Google certifications in content marketing and encourages anyone interested in the field to pursue the Analytics certification as soon as possible.

Along with specific skills relevant to content marketing, Pepin has learned some broader lessons that apply to all agencies and jobs.

“[I’ve learned that] not every person is right for every job,” Pepin said. “Agency culture and workplace culture are of supreme importance. The industry can change in an instant, but I like knowing that I am learning whatever I can today to be better tomorrow. [I’ve also learned that] I love Dallas more than I thought.”

A unique aspect of working for D Magazine or D Custom is having other TAI students going through the same experience as you. While most interns all have a separate title and purpose, they work together and help each other out during the workday.

“We work together on a lot of stuff,” Pepin said. “It is nice to have a familiar face and someone to talk to if I’m struggling. Sometimes there are ah-ha moments when things that we’ve learned at TAI are applicable to what we are doing, and it’s cool to know that she gets it.”

Sharing the internship experience, Evanich and Pepin have been able to learn and grow together, applying what they’ve learned in their Strategic Brand Management classes as well as learning new skills.

“We both have a similar skill set since we have been in the same classes,” Evanich said. “So if I don’t know how to do something, she doesn’t either. In that way, we both can ask another employee to help us out, and we both learn from the experience.”

Both Evanich and Pepin have enjoyed learning and growing their skill sets at D Custom. As their internships are almost over, Pepin has advice for any students that are looking to apply there in the future.

“If you are planning to apply to D Custom, know the difference between the agency and D Magazine,” Pepin said. “D Custom is completely separate and different from the publication, and you should know why before [you] apply.”

If you are interested in applying for an internship with D Custom or D Magazine and have any questions about the experience, feel free to contact Elissa Evanich (eevanich@smu.edu) or Bella Pepin (ipepin@smu.edu).

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Better Advertising. Better World. Personal Branding Professional Development TAI Students Undergraduate Students

TAI Student Emma Clayton Shares Experience Running Fashion/Lifestyle Blog

Image from Clayton’s blog “Dash of Serendipity”

Many people aspire to start a blog, but many are unsuccessful when it comes to turning that blog into a profitable outlet. TAI student Emma Clayton has been running her own blog, Dash of Serendipity, for over five years. She has even been able to make a profit off of her blog through affiliate links and sponsors.

In the beginning, Clayton had no intention of starting a blog, but as she gained a large following she decided to start an official blog, which is a combination of fashion, beauty, and just life in general.

“Back in 2012 I created a Tumblr account, just as all my friends were,” Clayton said. “Slowly I started posting photos of my outfits and gained a pretty large following through that. Eventually I realized I wanted to have the opportunity to write more in-depth posts and moved my blog to a platform more suited for blogging. My first Tumblr username was ‘sweetest-serendipityyy,’ after the Lee DeWyze song ‘Sweet Serendipity.’ As my blog was getting bigger I realized that [it] might not be the most professional name, so I came up with ‘Dash of Serendipity.’”

While running a blog sounds like fun and games, there can be many challenges that arise along the way, especially for a student who is also managing school and extracurriculars.

Another image from “Dash of Serendipity”

“This year trying to juggle the work from my classes and everything else I’m involved in on top of my blog has been difficult,” Clayton said. “I am the Director of Communications at SMU Relay for Life and the Vice President of Public Relations in my sorority, which are both positions that demand a lot of my time. I definitely haven’t posted on my blog as frequently as I would have liked to this year, but that serves as motivation to keep trying to become a better time manager and planner.”

Clayton’s interest in fashion and running a blog led her to major in Advertising with a specialization in Digital Media Strategy and minor in Fashion Media and Graphic Design. With this combination, Clayton is learning all the right skills to continue running her blog for a long time.

“One of the reasons I was interested in pursuing the Digital Media track in Advertising was because of my blog,” Clayton said. “After a few years of having my blog I realized that I was organically teaching myself how to advertise in the digital space as I was promoting and sharing my blog content across many platforms. Now, I see myself using and solidifying the ideas and strategies I’m learning in my classes on my blog almost immediately after learning them.”

Some of the strategies Clayton is learning in her Digital Media Strategy courses include SEO and using Google Analytics to boost her blog on the web.

Image from “Dash of Serendipity”

“Most recently, I’ve been able to use a lot of the skills I learned in my Media, Metrics and Measurements class to more fully understand Google Analytics,” Clayton said. “I’ve been using Google Analytics on my blog for a few years, but was very unfamiliar with the information I was generating. Now, I feel like I have a more solid understanding of the platform.”

Clayton’s favorite part about having a blog is having a place to channel her creativity, and she hopes to continue her blog as long as she can.

“There are times where school gets more busy and difficult where I have to put my blog on the back burner,” Clayton said. “I always realize during these times that I feel like I’m lacking something. Having my blog to put all of my creative energy into is really great.”

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Better Advertising. Better World. Internships Internships Professional Development SMU Creative TAI Students Undergraduate Students

TAI Student Eric Sedeno Shares Experience Interning with Photomadic

Many students have a specific idea in their head about what type of company they want to work for. Usually this is a well-known, popular company that students idolize. However, these students often don’t realize that smaller, less well-known companies can provide an equally wonderful, if not even more hands-on experience. TAI student Eric Sedeno is interning this semester as the Jr. Design Intern with Photomadic, a small photo solutions and event marketing company in Dallas.

TAI student Eric Sedeno

Sedeno is an Advertising major on the Creative track with a minor in Graphic Design. He has had a lot of past experience with graphic design, which helped him get the job.

“I actually did not apply to this internship,” Sedeno said. “My boss found my LinkedIn profile and thought that my work was great and sent me an email about their company and what they were about. I visited their office and enjoyed how young and energetic the office was and decided to accept their job offer.”

The atmosphere and culture at the Photomadic office has provided Sedeno with many great memories already.

“One day after work we went to Sandbar [Cantina and Grill] to celebrate [a colleague] Dave’s birthday,” Sedeno said. “We played volleyball and bonded for about 2 hours and it was a great day. The other night we shot a promo video at a brewery in Dallas and everyone had a great time. It was fun to see everyone get even more comfortable and I felt like I was a part of the office crew.”

Many of the skills that Sedeno has learned in his graphic design and creative advertising courses have come in handy during his internship. He has learned many new skills as well.

Sedeno with his boss at Photomadic.

“Although I had a lot of design experience before my class, Intro to Graphic Design has really taught me about how to apply design principles and organize my projects better,” Sedeno said. “It’s really nice to take the design rules I am learning in class and applying then almost directly to what I am doing at my internship. [My internship] has expanded my knowledge of Photoshop tremendously and they have given me time to learn more Adobe programs, which is something I never thought I would have the chance to do.”

After graduation, Sedeno hopes to have a career as an Art Director in the advertising industry. His work experience and school training should help him to achieve this goal.

“My career is going to be as an Art Director in the Advertising industry so having any extra design experience is great,” Sedeno said. “I love being able to expand my knowledge on the programs that I will be using for the rest of my career. I even have my boss as a resource for how I should make my website look and what people in the design side of the world expect things to look like and what matters when they want to hire you.”

Although this was not a typical internship experience, from the application process to the job, Sedeno has had an incredible experience so far.

“I was very skeptical about taking this internship because I had never been approached about working in a place that I had never heard about,” Sedeno said. “But I took a chance, and it has been one of the most rewarding experiences for me. I have learned a lot and built some great relationships. I have grown a lot as a designer and I am able to make money while gaining all these experiences. I can’t wait to see what else I gain from the rest of these experiences.”

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Better Advertising. Better World. Professional Development TAI Students Undergraduate Students

TAI Students Lindsey McCurdy & Bari Kesner Share Experience Being Student Athletes

Being a student athlete is tough at any level, but it only gets more difficult as the skill level progresses. College athletes face an extraordinary amount of stress during their years as a student athlete. Between practices, games and competitions, and classes, being a student athlete is a full-time job.

Lindsey McCurdy playing golf for SMU.

TAI student Lindsey McCurdy is an Advertising major on the Strategic Brand Management track and on the SMU Women’s Golf team. Like every student athlete, she has had to learn to balance her time between school and athletics.

“Balancing school and athletics is definitely tough,” McCurdy said. “It’s all about staying focused and managing priorities. Being involved in athletics can be mentally and physically exhausting, so being efficient with your time in both aspects is always important. Golf requires a heavy practice schedule almost every day of the week, so planning classes and study sessions ahead of time is important in order to stay on pace with school work.”

McCurdy chose advertising because it gave her an opportunity to marry her interests of sports and branding. She hopes to play golf professionally after she graduates, and she is planning on using her advertising knowledge to help in her success.

SMU Women’s Golf Team

“Advertising is going to play a big role in my post-grad plans,” McCurdy said. “Advertising plays a big part in tournaments, sponsorships, and personal branding in golf. Even when I am playing professionally, advertising and sponsorships will be a big part of my work on and off the course. As an individual sport, personal branding and company sponsorships are important for the success of the athletes in golf. Knowing the ins and outs of the business can help me during my time as a player as well as in my plans to stay in the business after my playing days end.”

TAI student Bari Kesner is an Advertising major the Strategic Brand Management track as well, and she is on the SMU Women’s Soccer team. Like McCurdy, Kesner has learned the art of balancing school and athletics.

“Being a college athlete really teaches you the art of time management,” Kesner said. “Procrastinating is not an option when you miss the amount of school we do during season. I have to be super organized and mark everything in my calendar (games, training, tests, due dates, etc.) in the beginning of the semester so I know how to adequately schedule my time.”

Immediately after graduation Kesner will not be pursuing a career in soccer. Instead, she will be joining Teach for America, serving as a teacher at a low-income school for two years.

Bari Kesner playing soccer for SMU.

“I honestly do not have one clear future career goal at this point of my life,” Kesner said. “I am joining the Teach For America Corps in Los Angeles post graduation in May and plan to teach middle school for the next couple of years. After my teaching experience I believe I will have a more clear vision of what I want to do for the rest of my professional life.”

Although she will not be working in advertising in a traditional sense, Kesner believes that her advertising courses will help her be a better teacher for the group of children she will be teaching.

“Advertising teaches you how to convince people what they need and why they need it or how it will better their lives,” Kesner said. “Because I will be teaching in underserved communities next year, I think advertising will help me successfully sell the importance of education to my students.”

Kesner (#24) and teammate.

While being a student athlete can lead to many different paths, every student athlete has a unique college experience that they share with each other.

“I have had a very different college experience and have missed countless social and school related events,” Kesner said. “But because of soccer I have learned important life lessons and have met girls that I know will be my best friends for the rest of my life because of what we have gone through together.”

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Better Advertising. Better World. Professional Development Research TAI Students Undergraduate Students

TAI Student Kelsi Jiang Shares Experience as Research Assistant in Psychology Lab

Research has always been the necessary backbone of many fields, including advertising. However, not everyone has the keen eye and skill required to be a successful researcher. TAI student Kelsi Jiang is a talented researcher in both the advertising and psychology fields.

Jiang is working on research studies within the Psychology department at SMU. She is working with Psychology Professor Michael Chmielewski and PhD student Rui Tang on several personality studies. She has various roles as a research assistant, including entering, managing and analyzing data, recruiting and contacting participants, and administering psychology tests to participants.

Jiang outside the SMU Psychology lab.

“Dr. Chmielewski’s lab focuses on personality studies, which covers psychopathology and normal-range personality with an emphasis on structure and assessment in both domains,” Jiang said. “Our current studies available for SMU Psychology students to participant in are: 1) Understanding personality through your cognitive ability. and 2) How college changes you over time.”

Her advertising classes have helped her to grow in her communication skills, which are very important for working in a research lab.

“As an international student, I used to avoid conversation and communication as much as possible,” Jiang said. “That can be a huge problem in research, and the difference between me and other research assistants who also [administered] tests to participants might become a reason for differences in the data. I would say all the advertising classes helped me develop my confidence in talking to people and polish up my communication skills.”

Jiang’s psychology research training also helped her in her advertising classes and in previous jobs.

“My research experience helped a lot in finding information and sorting out what is meaningful to the question of interest,” Jiang said. “I think the biggest benefit is my ability to read patterns from data and summarize key takeaways.”

Jiang’s love for research has taken her down the path to two separate majors; however, advertising and psychology backgrounds can work together very well.

“In many ways psychology and advertising work together,” Jiang said. “I think the most obvious one is in the research area. Marketing research and consumer research is the foundation of creating a successful ad campaign. Being able to read the research data and understand the research process [allows] marketers to better reach their target audience. On another hand, consumer behavior studies actually have a lot overlap with different areas of psychology. Learning those related theories could be very helpful to understand how people think and act.”

Jiang has always had a passion for research, which began from simply planning travel schedules for her friends and family. From that point, her courses at SMU influenced her love for research even further.

“I was obsessed to search information online and figure out how to make the best plan, most efficient, most interesting at the best price,” Jiang said. “When I started to study psychology, I didn’t know much about research. The first time I learned about research was my Research Methods class [for Psychology] where I got to know different types of research and how amazing and clever a lot of studies were designed. I always knew I loved numbers. As the research methods class went into more details, I find data and statistics is also a very important part of research. That also increased my interest and motivated me to take a Statistics minor.”

After graduation Jiang hopes to find a job in the advertising and marketing industry. She wants to specialize in search engine optimization or research, where she can use both her psychology and advertising training.

“Many people think that research is boring, complicated and time consuming,” Jiang said. “However, when you are really into it, you can find a whole different world. Numbers are not just numbers anymore, they tell you more reliable information than your thought and imagination [can].”

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Better Advertising. Better World. Personal Branding Professional Development TAI Students

TAI Student Monica Gonzalez Starts Event Planning Company

Many college students dream of starting a business of their own. Get to be your own boss. Work on what you’re passionate about. It’s a student’s dream job. However, many aspiring entrepreneurs never achieve this goal because of the many challenges they may face along the way. TAI student Monica Gonzalez has achieved her dream by starting her own event planning company, D’LUXE Group.

Gonzalez gained experience creating relationships with restaurants, bars, and other vendors while working for UConnection, a recently launched app that provides college students with discounts for off campus dining. She used these connections and her networking ability as a starting block to create her event planning company.

“My experience with UConnection helped me penetrate into the restaurant/bar industry in Dallas,” Gonzalez said. “Based off of the relationships I created from my summer with UConnection, I was able to easily approach the business that I knew would be interested in partnering up with D’LUXE Group, if they had previously shown interest in the SMU market. I never fully understood the power of building relationships until now. These people I took the time to know have given me their unconditional support and would do anything in their power to see D’LUXE Group succeed.”

Monica Gonzalez and her partners Gabriel Gonzalez (left) and Jonathan Garay (right).

Since its inception in December 2016 D’LUXE has helped local sororities and fraternities plan events for their chapters, including SMU’s chapters of Pi Kappa Alpha, Kappa Alpha Theta, Pi Beta Phi, and Phi Delta. Gonzalez has had lots of help along the way, including her partners former SMU Cox student Jonathan Garay and current SMU Cox student Gabriel Gonzalez.

“The three of us have dedicated a great deal of time and effort to the development of our company,” Gonzalez said. “It is incredible to see how each one of us brings something different to the table. We complement each other in our personal strengths and weaknesses.”

Like any other new business, there have been challenges along the way. However, the rewards of creating a business surely outweigh the negatives.

“The most challenging part, like any other entrepreneur might say, is the unlimited hours and effort building a business takes,” Gonzalez said. “And it makes it even harder when you don’t see a profit right away. [However,] the awesome partnerships I’ve created and seeing my friends having the best time ever at the events D’LUXE Group has organized for them is very rewarding.”

Gonzalez has used her advertising education and skills to help her brand her company from scratch. She has also appreciated the help of TAI’s professors and faculty.

“My advertising courses have taught me how to brand a company from the ground up,” Gonzalez said. “I’ve learned the power of promotion and the platforms that should be used to maximize your media budget. I would like to thank TAI for their unconditional support and mentorship. They have always believed in me even when I did not. They are the reason I was brave enough to decline two internships and take a leap of faith in building D’LUXE Group.”

With so much support along the way, Gonzalez has been able to create a business that she is proud of and achieve her dream along the way.

“My career-driven dream and goal has always been to build a business I am passionate about,” Gonzalez said. “D’LUXE Group has not only given me the opportunity to start my own business, but has also gifted me with the privilege of doing what I love most: long-lasting relationships, event planning, and brand building.”

To contact D’LUXE Group, call (512) 563-4073 or email dluxegroupdallas@gmail.com. 

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Better Advertising. Better World. Professional Development TAI Students Undergraduate Students

TAI Student Paige Brown Will Graduate a Year Early

Many students enter college with no idea what they want to major or have a career in. This can put a lot of students behind when it comes to graduating on time. However, if you’re one of the lucky few who has a good idea of what you want to do then you might even be able to graduate early. TAI student Paige Brown will be graduating this May, an entire year earlier than expected, with an Advertising (Digital Media Strategy) major and a French minor.

Brown came into college undecided on a major. She only knew that she had strengths in English and the humanities, and did not want to pursue math and science.

“I briefly considered being a markets and cultures major,” Brown said. “I also contemplated applying to Cox Business School to study marketing, but decided against it. I did not want to spend money or time on learning a lot of general business prerequisites, such as accounting or economics, and only taking a handful of actual marketing classes. I chose advertising because it is a more specific, creative alternative without all of those excessive prerequisites.”

After deciding on advertising, Brown took the required courses and applied for the advertising program in the Spring semester of her freshman year. Once admitted into the major, TAI’s advertising program is designed to be completed in two years – four consecutive semesters. With good planning and foreword thinking, Brown was able to finish her requirements for graduation in three years.

“I was officially accepted into the school the summer before my sophomore year,” Brown said. “It is only a 2-year long program, so I knew I would be able to complete my major studies by 2017. After double-checking to make sure I could also fit in my French minor, University Honors Program, and general UC requirements I went into my academic advisor’s office and changed my graduation date. For other schools besides TAI, I may have needed to take J-term or summer courses to accomplish everything in time to graduate early but I was able to get everything completed in the fall and spring semesters. This was extremely helpful because I used winter and summer breaks to intern.”

Throughout her years in the advertising program, Brown has had the opportunity to connect closely with fellow advertising students as well as getting to know her professors on a more relatable level than most.

TAI Digital Media Strategy students

“My favorite part about the advertising program was the people,” Brown said. “The faculty members are so inspiring, and care deeply about your future. There were several instances when my professors shared job opportunities with me, set up interviews, wrote recommendation letters, nominated me for scholarships and awards, and encouraged me to apply for Ad Team. Not only did they do this, but they all took the extra step and continually followed up with me to ask how things were going or if they could do anything to help me. The peers in my digital advertising classes also became my friends as we spent hours with each other every day and bonded over group projects. The class sizes were small, you always felt engaged and present, and it was extremely motivating.”

Her advertising courses provided her with a strong skillset to succeed in previous internships, as well as her future endeavors.

“My advertising classes have prepared me by covering real life case studies, terminology, and know-how,” Brown said. “One of my favorite classes was about how to behave and communicate in an agency setting. All of the courses are very practical and can be easily applied to your career if you are going into digital advertising. There were countless times at my internship where someone would introduce an idea or task to me, and I would already be familiar with it because of prior class discussions and projects.”

This past summer and fall semester, Brown interned with digital marketing agency Wpromote, acting as both SEO & Social Intern and Client Success Intern.

Brown (left) and fellow intern Alex Perez in the office.

“My internship experience was incredibly relevant, and made me feel like I am ready to enter into my advertising career this upcoming May,” Brown said. “I was assigned real work, had a number of helpful mentors from various departments, and created and presented a full digital campaign to the VP and other agency leaders. I now have working experience with SEO, social media, paid search, content creation, and client services. I feel confident and well-equipped for my future in digital advertising.”

With internship experience and her advertising degree in hand, Brown is planning on starting a career in the advertising industry post-graduation.

“I’m leaning towards [working at] a full service digital agency because of my degree’s digital specialization and my previous internship and work experience,” Brown said. “Digital is what everyone is using now, and will continue to use for the foreseeable future, and it’s always changing. I love that advertising in the digital space is a valued expertise that challenges you to keep up and continue to learn.”